Page 12 - LIMA 2023 - DAY 1 | DAILY NEWS

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used for ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance,
THE USE OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IS And Reconnaissance) missions once it

TRANSFORMING THE DEFENCE INDUSTRY becomes operational. After the design
and engineering work for the drone were
Additive manufacturing (AM) offers bound- Lockheed Martin RMS, Mercury Systems, completed, the printing process took just
less possibilities in the defence sector ReLogic Research, and Charles Stark five days. Al Seer Marine’s 3D printing unit
and is now making a mark in the mari- Draper Laboratory. The companies are is reportedly the world’s largest robotic
time domain as well. The excitement over working on developing prototype projects, additive manufacturing facility. The com-
the possibilities that 3D printing offer the using 3D printing technology, that focus pany intends to expand the facility even
defence sector is not limited to a particular on protecting military technologies from further and manufacture parts for its other
region alone, as AM applications pushes the enemy attacks. In November, the ser- unmanned vessels and vehicles. Also in the
production costs down and provides new vice made news by permanently installing works is a 3D printed mast for the HYDRA.
ways to 3D print replacement parts on a metal 3D printer aboard naval ship USS
demand, a plethora of projects, many of Bataan. The 3D printer onboard USS Essex Among the unmanned aerial vehicles
them pushing the limits of 3D printing far is just one of the examples of the extensive that the United Kingdom developed
beyond what most imagined possible, have use of AM by the U.S. military. In recent and flight-tested to help Ukraine resist
either been completed or are underway. years, different services have turned to 3D Russian aggression is a 3D-printed del-
Analysts expect further breakthroughs as printing to produce spare parts for fighter ta-wing suicide drone. In July 2022, the
militaries are exploring new design engi- jets, drones, and even barracks for remote U.S. Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS
Essex became the first American ship
neering possibilities using AM technologies outposts. The Defence Logistics Agency with a metal 3D printer onboard. The high-
that have the potential to reduce part lead (DLA) of the U.S. Department of Defence speed printer, used by both the Navy and
times by as much as 90 per cent, slash (DoD) is developing a set of common the Marines, gives the crew the ability to
materials cost by 90 per cent, reduce waste standards and methods to streamline 3D manufacture replacement parts for drones
and cut energy use in half as compared to printing for the U.S. military. The DLA is also on demand, thus reducing the inventory of
legacy processes. finetuning a programme that will facilitate spare parts on the ship. In May 2022, the
remote inspection for 3D printed parts; this
The U.S. Navy is one of the early birds is expected to reduce the time required for Biden Administration joined GE Aviation,
Honeywell, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon,
when it comes to adopting the technol- inspection by a whopping 90 per cent. and Siemens Energy to launch Additive
ogy. In 2017, the service used additive Manufacturing Forward (AM Forward) to
manufacturing to create submarine parts. In another example of the possibilities of encourage the use of 3D printing technolo-
In October 2022, it opened its Additive AM, Al Seer Marine, a UAE-based company gies in companies across the United States.
Manufacturing Center of Excellence at the has built the Hydra unmanned surface The initiative, which is expected to have a
State of Virginia’s Center for Manufacturing vessel (USV), which weighs 350 kg and positive impact on supply chain resilience,
Advancement on the campus of the measures 5m in length. Hydra is the first involves the five companies purchasing
Institute for Advanced Learning and 3D printed unmanned surface vessel. additively produced parts from smaller
Research. In January last year, the U.S. The boat, stealthy in nature, has sensors U.S.-based suppliers, training the workers
Naval Surface Warfare Center signed six located inside the vessel, and will be pow- of suppliers on new additive technologies,
new AM deals, with companies as diverse ered with electric motors. A technological developing common, and introducing cer-
as General Electric, Johns Hopkins APL, demonstration platform, Hydra will be tification for additive products.
12 MAY-23-2023 WWW.GBP.COM.SG/DAILY NEWS